Parmesan Crisps

I'd promised this recipe as a follow-up to the Oregano and Arugula Pesto--and yesterday at that. But the day rather got away from me.

Bruce and I went down to the central part of the Connecticut to tape another episode of a statewide daytime talk show, sort of like a milder version of Regis and Kelly. (If you want to see the mayhem that ensued, check it out here.) After a thousand errands and our weekly CSA pick-up, we didn't get back home until almost 5:00--and then it was high time for a glass of wine.

So today, those promised crisps. Boy, do I love these things--for a nibble with cocktails, for a bit of crunchy goodness tossed into salads, for a snack in the middle of the afternoon. And they're terrific dipped into that pesto. Plus, nothing could be easier. A single ingredient and a hot skillet. Period.

So here's how it goes.

But first, a caveat: use only Parmigiano-Reggiano sold in wedges and blocks chipped off whole rounds with the name stamped on the rind. Yes, you can use domestic Parmesan, but no fake stuff under any circumstances.

And grate it with the small holes of a box grater (or with a microplane--but the small holes of the box grater are actually better because it doesn't render the cheese so fine).

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Once it's quite hot, add little bits of the shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano, about 1 loosely packed tablespoon at a time, making little mounds of the stuff in the skillet, mounds which will melt over the heat.

Once they're all in the skillet, drop the heat to medium. Don't bother the rounds, touch them, or do much of anything except wait for them to turn golden and even brown around the edges, the cheese bubbling like a little cauldron in each.

The finer the cheese has been grated, the more quickly this melting/browning will go. Plan on about 2 minutes, but just watch. Otherwise, there's nothing to be done.

Remove the crisps from the skillet with a spatula designed for nonstick cookware and set them on a plate. They'll be a little soft and bendy. Don't worry. You can flatten them out or even leave them crinkled. They'll dry and turn hyper-crunchy within a few seconds. Then go back to making more, as you will. If you want to make fancy little crisps, drape the ones right out of the skillet over a wooden rolling pin, thereby letting them dry into curved shapes. But who has time for all that when there are crisps to be eaten--either plain or with a few grinds of black pepper over them?